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Doing the Work of Evangelization in a Digital Age

Doing the Work of Evangelization in a Digital Age

Last updated on: December 28, 2018 at 6:24 pm by Rev. Jared V. Ingle

Doing the Work of Evangelization in a Digital Age 2018-12-28T18:24:46-05:00 Rev. Jared V. Ingle

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Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going. (Ecclesiastes 9.10, NKJV)

This has been an interesting year in the ministry. There was another couple years in Kentucky that were similar. I have devoted most of my time to serving behind the scenes, to writing, consulting, preaching, and teaching. This work is not readily visible now, the fruit of which will be seen in years to come.

I was given an amazing opportunity to write for Patheos, an aspiration I’ve held for a few years. To support the work, I’ve focused primarily on Facebook as a type of storefront, and YouTube for vlogs. I have taken the economic (free) route for marketing to start building a platform. In fact, the only paid marketing I’ve done has come from a $15 Facebook advertising coupon. I have experimented with other tools as well, like a WordPress site for the family, and email list building through MailChimp.

When it comes to coaching, of course Patheos offers advice on best practices, and shares proprietary information. I do draw from other sources as well on a fairly regular basis. There really is no one better than David Boozer, as far as an internet marketing coach. I have also enjoyed attending a few of the workshops by the SCORE chapter in Traverse City. This is a free business coaching initiative. I also happen to have a good internet guru friend named Mark Beasley. Late in the year, I discovered some Facebook strategies from Brian Moran. Sunny Lenarduzzi has material I will soon explore about YouTube channel development.

All that said, this is a quick look back at some highlights this year, and guesstimates as to why they were successes.

I’ll also share a quick thought on why I’m doing what I’m doing.

The Blog

Rev. Jared V. Ingle, Evangelical Columnist at Patheos
https://www.patheos.com/blogs/jaredingle/

This post led all year up until recently

The Authentic Faith of Thomas

Bela Ivanyi-Grunwald | Doubting Saint Thomas
Hungarian National Gallery | Public Domain

There are some factors I can point to that make this piece interesting. First of all, the vlogs are outperforming the writings across the board. I offer 2 pieces per week on Patheos. The 1st is a vlog. The 2nd is a writing. Another factor probably has to do with the universality of this story. Everyone probably relates to Thomas. However, have they ever heard some good reasons why Thomas may say the things that he does?

Most Pageviews (454):

The Deadly Sin of Acedia

Gyula Derkovits | Workers in the Field
1920 | Public Domain

Again, this is a vlog. However, this is a part of a sermon that was published immediately after speaking in a local congregation, Harbor Light Christian Center. Pastor Peter Moon and I consulted to publish the work. I believe the local context had something to do with the success, because this one topped the charts within only a couple weeks. The other factor is that people may have heard about the deadly sins. The title alone could have peaked the curiosity.

As of this morning (12.28.18) we’ve peaked 8,000 pageviews on Patheos (8,026). Again, although I do not have a tremendous following, this is better than all previous blogging platform performances in years gone by. Remember, this is organic (free) marketing.

YouTube

JCIngle YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfLHpP_H9jEE_sZNLeJos5A

JCIngle Playlists (created content):

patheos.com/blogs/jaredingle: Utilized for the vlog posts on Patheos

The Ingle Brothers: Mateo and Cruz are posting hilarious videos

CLEARANCE AISLE: Real stores, real products, real fun, really short videos

Most Views (122):

The greatest factor I can see, that is different than some of the other posts, is that I start with a fun skating rink illustration. Crystal believes that the content is interesting as well. We all need to know that we can, and how we can, contribute to the work of the Kingdom of God.

Most Watch Time (478 minutes):

I have actually been surprised by this one. All of our videos that have done well have been under 10 minutes. This one is nearly 15. However, the brothers are pretty funny with this made-up game. They also took quite a bit of time to add sound effects and graphics, so there really isn’t any down time at all. If only I could get them to do videos like this more often!

As of this morning (12.28.18) we have 1,783 views this year. To start making money on this account, we need 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 hours of watch time in the previous 12 months. David Boozer (mentioned above) pays his mortgage and car payment off of his YouTube earnings alone. Well we don’t have the needed subscribers yet, but we definitely will have the watch time soon. We’re at 3,515 minutes so far in less than a year.

Facebook

JCIngle Facebook Page
https://www.facebook.com/jaredandcrystal

Making some space to weave the threads of our journey together . . .

Pictures, quotes, and posts from everything . . .

Jared Ingle at Patheos

JCIngle YouTube

Crystal Ingle at VIPKID: Crystal has been teaching English as a 2nd language online this year, and has been loving every minute. If you are interested in knowing more, follow her link. You can also reach her at [email protected]. Forbes rated VIPKID as the #1 work from home (remote) job at the beginning of the year.

Ingle5 at WordPress

JCIngle Soundcloud

JCIngle email list: This is a list we started using on a regular-ish basis. There are a couple different categories of recipients. We may offer updates once-a-month or once-a-quarter. We definitely do not spam. We’re grateful for everyone who journeys alongside us. Click the link to sign up!

Most Reach (1,074):

These numbers are tracked through our JCIngle FB page. I posted some of the articles from this 3-part series in local forums. Traverse City has some strong online communities that discuss local issues.

We paid for some advertising later this year. However, we did not pay anything for this post. It is all organic reach, getting the post out in front of the eyes of over 1K people. A couple other posts did about this good as well.

The Podcast

JCIngle Soundcloud
https://soundcloud.com/jcingle

We use Soundcloud as a podcast and post up to 3 hours of content for free. We can also establish an iTunes podcast through Soundcloud (JCIngle iTunes).

Soundcloud actually seems to be the wildcard out of the web tools that I use. Sometimes, it’s driving more traffic to Patheos than anything else. I’m not actively engaging and using it like social media, but merely as a place to house audio. One night recently, I logged in to see if there was any activity. I discovered this.

There were 475 hits on this one podcast within a couple nights. One person had liked the podcast. However, a marketing group had picked it up and reposted it. I can’t say that they’re the ones who made it a success. I guess there are aspects of web development that you really can’t plan for.

The Why

As noted earlier, I want to take a brief moment to share why I’m doing what I’m doing. I am not technically a digital native, but a digital immigrant. For the most part I utilize what technology is necessary from day to day.

I remember life before Atari home game systems. If you wanted to play video games, you went to this neat social gathering place called an arcade. I remember when our school only had one computer for students, the Apple IIc. We had to take turns playing Oregon Trail on a black screen with limited green graphics. I remember life before one of our former Vice Presidents invented the internet, as he claimed. I remember when phones were connected to the kitchen wall, and when a mobile phone was one with a really long cord. Life really was more simple. We could play all day outside with our neighbor friends because our parents knew all the other parents in the neighborhood.

I wish I could recreate those days and offer them to my children, but I can’t. They have no way of relating to the previous paragraph. My kids were born in a different age. They are digital natives.

JVI | DCI: Digital Native
West Side Community Church, Traverse City, MI | 11.04.18

Although I’ve studied postmodernism and it’s rise since the 1800’s ad nauseam, I think the digital age will also leave a historic mark on these current generations.

Insert Scripture about reaching those around you here . . .

I have my favorite Scriptures and I’m sure you do as well. Whether you’re the type of person to target specific groups or not, we all have to admit that the digital age is changing the way we communicate.

Therefore, I believe we have to change the way we participate in evangelization. The ways that people my age and older communicate now, will age out of the church before long. We may as well do a little homework and start communicating in a variety of ways as soon as possible. Are we effectively evangelizing, maximizing our impact, utilizing available tools (like the free ones in this post)?

There are many reasons why I enjoy doing what I am doing and work hard at it, but for me evangelization is the bottom line.

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